Traditional Korean Music And Dance Performances

“Movement Korea” Performance Recap

Besides mathematics, I believe one of the other languages that connect people is music. Gwanggaeto Samulnori Art Company has performed in 20 countries promoting Korean traditional entertainment. I attended their latest project: 2018 LA Ari Project “Movement Korea” at the Korean Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

The night began with rhythmic music filling the Ari Hall theatre. There were five selections this year and they included:

Korea Traditional Drum Ensemble ~ “Samulnori – The Sound of Soul”

Korean Traditional Drum Ensemble

The KCCLA describes the musical instruments that were used as: “Samulnori includes 4 Samul, meaning four objects: Kwanggari (a small gong), Janggu (an hourglass-shaped drum), Buk (a barrel drum) and Jing (a big gong).” The four musicians and traditional Korean singer lead the crowd through a progression of soulful music.

B-Boy Performance ~ “Korea Style”

Rooted from hip-hop dance that began in the United States, b-boying has gained popularity and influenced Korea’s street performers. Energizing the crowd with solo dance breaks and synchronized movements the next performers demonstrated a perfect blending of the two cultures.

B-Boy Dancers: Kang Jae Sung, Park Jin Hyoung, Ha Tae Young

If you would like to watch their live performance check out Korean Convenience facebook page here.

The next performance included a mixture of old and new. The lion dancers are joined onstage by a talented beatboxer who used his vocal training to mix with the traditional taepyeongso instrument. Typically, the lion dance is performed on the Chinese New Year and is believed to bring good luck and fortune.

Beatbox & Lion dance ~ “U-heung Yo!”

“Pansori Beat Sori ~ New Cunhangjun”

A pansori and beatbox collaboration continued the exploration of blending old and new traditions. Although, the story was only explained in the Korean language I was still able to laugh along with the audience as the story unfolded.

To conclude the evening performance all of the entertainers gathered on stage to showcase each of their specialized talents.

The night was then concluded with a musical performance of the traditional Korean folk song “Arirang.” Overall, it was a joyous evening shared with all attendees and I’m glad that I chose to attend.

If you would like to find out about upcoming events and field trips held at the Korean Cultural Center, Los Angeles check out their website at www.kccla.org.